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RAPAPORT... LVMH Moët Hennessy Louis Vuitton, in partnership with the Chinese-American Planning Council (CPC) and Parsons: The New School for Design, created the education program, LVMH Fundamentals in Luxury Retail: A CPC/Parsons Collaboration, which is designed to train qualified candidates for the luxury goods retail market. The duration of the program is approximately 10 weeks and it includes classroom education at Parsons, followed by an internship program working in one of LVMH's retail stores. The classroom sessions will be led by Parsons professors, as well as LVMH managers and training professionals. Topics covered in the classes will range from fashion history and understanding consumer trends to retail operations, communications and teamwork skills. The program targets Chinese-Americans, including those from underprivileged families and individuals who have recently immigrated to the U.S., to help them gain an employment edge. The program has partial funding from The Robin Hood Foundation, New York’s largest poverty-fighting organization. The CPC is recruiting students to participate in the first session; the application process is open to English and Mandarin-speaking members of the Chinese community who are currently low-wage workers, under- or unemployed, have a high school diploma or its equivalent and who are passionate about fashion and retail. The first session will begin in March 2014 and two additional sessions are planned later in the year. Chantal Gaemperle, LVMH's group executive vice president of human resources, said, “We are thrilled to partner with the CPC and Parsons, with support from Robin Hood, to launch a unique training program for Chinese-Americans: our aim is to help job-seekers seize opportunities in the luxury retail business. The program’s combined classroom and in-store training will develop talent with Mandarin-language skills, allowing the graduates to acquire the necessary basics as well as the confidence for a successful career within our demanding sector. This project also addresses a specific need among luxury retail stores to best serve their Chinese-speaking customers while boosting career advancement opportunities for the community in New York City.”
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